Most congregations have their own private collection of rising stars. They
may be few or many. There may be a young lawyer or two. Perhaps an accountant, or
youthful executive type. Within a year or two at most they are happily
out-earning the pastor who has been on the job for half a life time. Their
career paths are taking off.

In their despondent moments it is not surprising that pastors may wonder
where they went wrong. All this devotion to a call to ministry and where does it
get you? Still with a mortgage or no house at all. A beaten up car with leaky
rings and a stereo marketed just after Noah hit Mt Ararat. Job security is not
guaranteed and you can never predict what tomorrow will produce. There may be
some joy to keep you going but you can bet there will be a few dramas to exercise
your prayer life.

Well at least pastors are not climbing over each other to get to the top.
There is no dog-eat-dog in the ministry. And as for the career path, let’s not
get too carried away! But is there just a risk that there could be some
hankering after better things? Might there not be an unspoken well worn trail up
the Everest of spiritual ambition? For example:

* Could it be that the rural church is regarded as the leaping off point for
that congregation in the big smoke?

* Or may be it is desirable to shift from Anywhere Small Church to Central
Location Big Church?

* Or from part time pastor to full time?

* Or from the old conservative congregation to user friendly contemporary?

* Or from solo pilot to team captain?

* Or from the run down mission hall to brand spanking new facilities?

* Or from survival dollars and a bag of vegies each week to all the lurks,
the perks and the proper rewards which come with a ministry which is truly
blessed?

There seems to be an understood assumption that the next move, whatever form
it may take, is to bigger and better, from smaller to larger, from poorer to
richer, from out in the sticks to the middle of the action. Who us have not, at
some time or another, seen ourselves in rather more spectacular circumstances
than we may be in at the present? Tucked safely away in most of us is the desire
for grander things. We may feel devalued or overlooked when we observe colleagues
moving into rather more exciting ministries than ours. What’s so remarkable
about them anyway?

Pastors are a funny mob. There is an ingrained need for affirmation, to be
noticed, to be appreciated. We hurt when there is no seeming reward for genuine
effort. It is not that we are necessarily dissatisfied with our lot. Rather, it
is that we feel our hard work and dedication should warrant a little more notice
than it seems to attract. We sense that the “big one” in ministry for us is yet
to come. Mind you, we are not about to push ourselves or launch a subtle
promotional campaign. But, my goodness, the temptation hovers around in the
ether from time to time.

Part of the problem is that the grass does often seem to be greener on the
other side of the fence. Who would not trade in a deacon or two on a bad day or
pray that a few of our troublesome people might receive an early graduation into
Glory? It is so easy to feel stifled,constrained and without any possibility of
relief. It is about here that we start to wonder if the quietness on our own
western front might just be swapped for something a little more exciting, more
manageable and more hassle free.

Some of us are genuinely inspired by our own remarkable giftedness. God has
been generous to us and we have much to offer His people. Not for a moment do we
consider that we have reached the peak of our significant contribution to the
Kingdom. Besides, we feel sufficiently blessed to want to share this goodness
all around. We just know that greater things are in store for us and all who
will come to know us. Our theological back pack is a little heavier than the
rest of the herd. We have that extra something when it comes to getting a point
across.

Now there is only one difficulty in all of this
peeking-over-the-fence-anticipating-greater-days syndrome. Our Founder would not
have a bar of it. He was unconcerned about His own reputation. His curious
personnel selection policy carried at least one fatal flaw and, when the chips
were down, another denied his associations with Him while the rest just
disappeared. It was not a great start. He chided His colleagues for debating
the who-is-greatest-around-here subject and would not book the best seats at His
table in the hereafter for His ambitious friends. Further, there is not a shred
of evidence that he promoted Himself in any shape or form. He even bamboozled
them all by suggesting that they would do a lot better if they became like
children. For all His hard work, he ended up being killed for it. Now, what
kind of career path is this?

Perhaps we would do a lot better if we were just plain thankful that His
grace has saved us and that He has taken yet another risk in calling us to serve
Him. May be we should learn to revel in the mystery of the present without
getting too hung up about what may happen tomorrow. Although they may indeed be
an odd collection, we might even be the vehicle of joy, love and encouragement
for those to whom we have been called right now. Since when have we had the
right to lust after greater things, to wonder what our name might look like when
it goes up in lights?

A career path for pastors? Let’s get real. The bottom line is not being
noticed but being obedient; not being spiritual super stars working miracles but
holding the hands of the homeless and the hopeless; of believing that true
greatness is discovered in the doing of simple acts of kindness which will never
be seen except by those who are on the receiving end. Our career path is about
being taken for granted, about serenity when the tables are turned against
us,about wearing criticism from the self righteous and those who know better,
about locking horns with those who abuse and exploit. The rewards won’t be
terrific when measured by the benchmarks of our own culture but they will be
close to what the Carpenter was on about.

It’s a shame no one talked to Him about being a little wiser, a little more
street wise, just a touch more assertive. It could have been so different.
There is no doubt about it: He could have made it to the top if only He had
tried.

– John Simpson <>